Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the Tesla Supercharger “will feel like alien spaceships landed at highway rest stops.” We all get to experience that landing first hand on Monday, September 24 at 7:30 PDT.

Tesla has released a grainy preview snap that may or may not indicate some solar PV involvement in the project.

What is known for sure is that the Tesla Supercharger is a serious piece of equipment and can fully charge up your Model S Performance sedan (which has a 265 mile range and a 85 kWh battery) in about 45 minutes. Which translates to regaining a mile of range for every 10 seconds you have the car plugged in. Not too bad.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk's Supercharger Tweet

The event will be live streamed beginning at 8PM PDT, and will be available from Tesla’s website (here) as well as here at InsideEVs.

Update: In the video below Tesla CEO talks with Bloomberg about the Superchargers, and how Tesla plans to enable people to travel anywhere in the United States, and there will be “over 100” stations available.

Tesla Event Press Release:

Tesla Motors To Unveil Much-Anticipated Tesla Supercharger

Tesla Motors, the California-based maker of Model S, will reveal the Tesla Supercharger and deployment plans, providing a solution for the electric vehicle’s long-distance road trip that only Model S can achieve.

More on Tesla Tesla Motors’ goal is to accelerate the world’s transition to electric mobility. Palo Alto, California-based Tesla designs and manufactures electric vehicles (EVs) such as the Tesla Roadster and Tesla Model S, as well as EV powertrain components for partners such as Toyota and Daimler.

With the most energy-dense battery pack in the industry and best-in-class aerodynamics, Model S has the longest range of any production electric car in the world. Model S comes with three battery options to fit the unique needs of different drivers. The 85 kWh Model S has been certified by the U.S. EPA with a range of 265 miles*, giving it the best electrical vehicle range in the industry.

Model S is the first premium sedan designed from the ground up to take full advantage of electric vehicle architecture. A revolutionary powertrain sits under the floorboard of Model S, creating an ultra-low center of gravity. Paired with an aluminum body engineered for superior handling, Tesla has created a vehicle that raises the bar for performance and efficiency while meeting the highest standards for safety.

Without an internal combustion engine or transmission tunnel, the interior of Model S has more cargo space than any other sedan in its class and includes a second trunk under the hood. Model S seats five adults and two children in optional rear-facing child seats. Model S Performance models accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in as little as 4.4 seconds. The interior features a 17″ in-dash touchscreen with internet capabilities, allowing for streaming radio, web browsing and navigation.

The only thing no one ever talks about is this unit probably draws 150KW from the power line fieeding it. This would push up the DEMAND (monthly fine, lets say an avg of $13/kw) to $1950.00 per month, and thats before any energy/delivery services/energy charges. These chargers must be used OFTEN to make it even a break even proposition.

Of course if these chargers are gov’t subsidized, then all bets are off since gov’ts of all kinds have no worry about what it really costs to provide service. They just raise taxes on everone else.

And before someone calls me a spoil sport, in the future there will be a relatively simple solution for this (ask me!), and I own 2 EV’s outright. So I’m DEFINITELY in favor of EV’s, just not necessarily this particular fast charger.. We need to know more green eye shade info as to how these will work and be billed for in the Real World.

Bill, I can’t speak for the USA, since I don’t live there, but a 150 kW grid connection will cost you about 300 euros per month in The Netherlands (connection fee excl. consumed kWh). Is the US really so much more expensive? And the only thing no one ever talks about is this unit probably draws 150KW from the power line feeding it? Are you being serious? That’s just about what every body talks about! Often accompanied by horror stories of grid melt downs and rolling blackouts as soon as someone plugs in their Model S. 😉 100 kW barely registers on the control panel of grid operators. They work with different units: MW, GW. It might be that a local transformer may need an upgrade, but as the superchargers are planned near rest stops, I don’t see an immediate problem. The first supercharger will likely be installed at Harris Ranch. Look it up on google maps. I see a hotel, with a swimming pool, a gas station, a restaurant. All with freezers, water pumps, microwaves, air conditioners, lighting, televisions, computers, minibars. What do you estimate the permanent power draw is? 50 kW, 100 kW? 500 kW? I’m not so… Read more »

Not to mention that Musk is on the board of a tiny company called SolarCity (www.solarcity.com) so it is very likely that the supercharger installations will include solar panels and storage batteries to offset the demand on the grid.

Not everything in life is about breaking even. The value proposition is extremely subjective.

vdiv, I would be very surprised if the superchargers sported a storage battery. Makes them much, much more expensive and for what reason? In essence you can use the grid as a battery of infinite size and 100% efficiency.

And in the larger scheme of things: as long as the grid is dominated by fossil fuel generation, there is no need for storage. We are still in the phase that investments in actual renewable generation are far more beneficial than investments in storage. Someday, this will start to change, but that day is still 1-2 decades a way at least.